The Light at Kor'lyrr Tower
by starforge
Summary: As anti-Imperial riots break out across the galaxy in the wake of Endor, a couple on Bothawui must face the ultimate consequence. One-shot.


The windows rattled as a speeder far below exploded in a hail of fire and shrapnel, the flaming bits coating the streets and the muddled, undulating seas of protestors and Stormtroopers that filled them. Even from the thirty-seventh level of Kor'lyrr Tower, the riots overwhelmed any and all attempts at ignorance. Screams and shouting rose up from the ground, the occasional squeal of blasterfire interjecting amid the dull roar that seems to shake the building to its very foundations.

From such a height, one could just barely make out the brawls between the Imperial soliders and their hopelessly underequipped counterparts, who flung themselves at the uniformed troops and armored vehicles with wild abandon, wielding only their limbs and whatever weapons they could get their hands on. Black, choking fumes puffed upwards in great, rancid clouds, bursting forth from the many fires that blazed away at ground level. The tension between the Empire and the growing presence of the Rebellion on Bothawui had been building for years, despite every attempt by the planetary government to remain neutral. The death of the Emperor had been the latest and most crucial blow against the occupiers, energizing every call for resistance against the monolithic force that had held its world under its rule for over a generation. And here, in the capitol of Drev'starn, the two sides had finally hit their boiling point.

From across the apartment, the doorway whined gently as it hissed open. A pair of figures stumbled inwards, one hauling the other as she lurched forwards unsteadily on a single leg. The entire right side of the Bothan woman's body lay exposed, the flesh furless and cauterized. Her slender, once beautiful form twitched and spasmed, her breaths ragged and punctuated by small, pained whimpers as she was laid atop a bed in the corner.

The human male that had carried her inside rushed off towards a cabinet on the other side of the room as soon as she lay upon the mattress, his spastic motions accompanied by frantic mutterings, "Blast it, **blast it…**where could it be?!" He nearly ripped the doors off of the piece of furniture as he rummaged through its content, a gasp escaping his throat as his fingers clamped around the desired object.

With the bacta balm in hand, the lanky, pale-faced male rushed back to the Bothan woman's side, fumbling with the cap as he began to gently stroke the sticky, sweet-scented contents of the container upon her burns as fast as he could. As his fingers pressed against the encrusted, cracking flesh, the black-furred female winced, in pain, her amethyst eyes fluttering open as tears began to pour down her cheeks. She managed a glance towards the man, and from her throat a single, arid laugh managed to force its way past her lips.

"I don't think that's going to be enough bacta, Kenth…"

The human male gasped softly at the sound of her voice, before shaking his head, his voice stammering as he insisted, "I-it's just to get the burns s-stabilized, a-and to prevent infection! W-we can get you to a tank as soon as I take you up to the speeder pad!"

The Bothan woman shuddered as his digits rubbed over a raw muscle, shaking her muzzle once as her ears folded back, "We'll never make it…even if we had a speeder…they'd shoot down anyone who tried to leave the building." Outside, the loud shriek of an Imperial fighter overhead cemented her words.

Kenth shivered at the sensation of touching the Bothan's scarred, tortured flesh, swallowing as he struggled to hold back tears, "Th-then we'll stay here until I can get you to a hospital!"

"I can hear them, Kenth…They're searching the building for protestors, floor by floor." From below, the sounds of muffled shouting and struggling could be heard through the ventilation shaft between levels, the whine of a single burst of blasterfire causing his breath to catch within his throat. He managed to meet her gaze as she spoke the truth, his eyes wide as his body trembled.

"Look at us, Kenth. They'll know it was us out there…and even if we hadn't been, you know what they'd do to our pairing. W-we'll probably be shot r-right on the-"

A soft yelp escaped her as a particularly nasty shock of pain shot up her spine, her ears folding back against her skull. Her left hand, the one that was still coated in soft, warm onyx fur, reached downwards into her pocket as Kenth shuddered above her, the young man's tear ducts finally giving way, his cheeks growing wet as the salty drops splashed downwards, "I w-won't let them take us, Nyir! I-I won't let them have you!"

Nyir actually managed a soft smile as her fingers curled about a sphere, withdrawing it as she nodded, "I know you won't…" She trembled as she held up the silvery object, "I-I didn't manage to use this down there…maybe it can at least bring us some peace."

Kenth's eyes widened slightly as he beheld the thermal detonator, his fingers carefully withdrawing the explosive globe from hers. He managed to nod his head, sniffling once as he looked back to her, leaning over her prone form upon the bed. His lips came down gently atop hers, a soft whimper accompanying a fresh stream of tears, "I'm sorry, Nyir…Damn it, I'm **so **sorry…"

The Bothan woman laughed, a hint of her once-melodious voice still remaining in the expression. She leaned back up with the remainder of her strength, her lips pressed against his as the sound of clattering armor and heavy boots rang through the hallway outside, "For what? Kenth, we have done all we can. We chose to stand for good, though we knew others would rise against us. We chose to come together, though we knew we invited danger with every step." She paused, her eyes glimmering as she smiled, "And I chose to love you, laws and traditions be damned."

"Hey, open up in there!" The sound of an armored fist clanking against the door resounded with the muffled voice, "Open up in there!"

"Our path ends here, my love. It was shorter than either of us wished it to be, but it was ours. But I'm glad that it at least ends with you here, with me." Her hand reached shakily upwards, her fingers fondly stroking the human's short, brownish hair. "And though we shall burn, our fire will blaze bright enough for all to see what we stood for. Whatever happens this day, we shall not be forgotten."

The young man shivered as he took her hand within his, firmly clasping her slender, soft fingers. His other hand gently and carefully lifted hers from the pillow it had been resting upon, and the tearful human leaned in for one last kiss, savoring the simple sensation of sharing himself with his lover. Across the room, the door shuddered and shrieked once as the lock was blasted off from outside, a single blaster bolt melting durasteel as the doorway was forced open. Nyir broke the kiss, her smile sad in a way that Kenth had never known.

Slowly, reluctantly, his finger shifted to the priming switch, pushing it on its agonizing slide into the forward position. The explosive whirred softly as it began its short countdown, the noise deceptively soft as its violent core was readied. The door was finally thrown open; A single white-armored Stormtrooper lurched inside, blaster drawn as the muffled voice from his menacing helmet's vocoder began to make the usual demands.

"All right, hands up! Nobody move, or I'll-"

For a moment, the trooper froze, the whirring ball clutched in the hands of the other man causing him to stare in disbelief. Then, as the gently ticking countdown reached his ears, the henchman shrieked and stumbled back, crying out in utter terror to his comrades, "Fall back, fall back!"

Kenth exhaled slowly, leaning down against Nyir as the timer's tone finally held steady, eyes closed as he clutched the puny sphere between his breast and hers. There was a flash of light, and the thirty-seventh floor of Kor'lyrr Tower was engulfed in flames, each and every window bursting outwards as the hallways blazed in the resulting inferno. The blast lit up the darkening skies as the clash between the citizens of Drev'starn and their galactic overlords continued. From below, Bothans and others bellowed rallying cries as they caught sight of the burning structure, vowing to strike back for the destruction the conflict had brought to their city, to avenge the bodies that lay strewn upon the ground.

That day, the protests were finally successful; the Imperial troops were driven from the capital city, forced to wait in the countryside for assistance from the capital ships that had abandoned them on the surface. But no help came, and the clash between the citizens and the Imperial soldiers would be the last battle to be fought within Drev'starn's walls for decades to come. And when those who had not heard the tale were told, the light of Kor'lyrr Tower, the burning blaze that had lit up the streets and stuck fear into the monoform soldiers that had occupied their world, was never forgotten.


End file.
